New Delhi, The Supreme Court has said the absence of recovery of a train ticket from a deceased passenger cannot result in defeating the compensation claim, as it restored the payout awarded to the parents of a man who died after falling from a moving train in Gujarat in 2017.
Supreme Court Upholds Compensation for Train Accident Victim’s Parents
The Supreme Court of India has overturned a Gujarat High Court ruling that denied compensation to the parents of Maheshbhai, who tragically died after falling from a train on September 27, 2017. The incident occurred while he was traveling from Ahmedabad to Surat, where a sudden jerk caused him to fall from the general compartment.
On June 17, 2022, the Railways Claim Tribunal classified the event as an ‘untoward incident’ and awarded Maheshbhai’s parents ₹8 lakh in compensation, along with interest at nine percent per annum from the date of the accident until the order was issued. The Tribunal acknowledged that Maheshbhai sustained serious injuries and was hospitalized for over a month following the fall.
The Supreme Court bench, comprising Justices Ujjal Bhuyan and AS Chandurkar, emphasized that the lengthy delay in preparing the investigation report—finalized on May 17, 2018—should not be held against the claimants. They stated that the Railways could not benefit from their own delay in the inquiry process.
The bench on Friday said, “The high court gave undue importance to the absence of the railway ticket without taking into consideration the statement made on oath by the victim’s father and the fact that the victim had been hospitalised for a period of more than one month. On the preponderance of probabilities, it can be concluded that the victim was a bona fide passenger and that absence of recovery of his ticket cannot result in defeating the claim for compensation. “He, however, succumbed to his injuries on October 31, 2017.
In normal course, when the victim was undergoing medical treatment, it is quite unlikely that the railway ticket would have been preserved by the claimants,” it said.
The bench said the court is inclined to ignore the said investigation report and it cannot come in the way of the claimants in receiving compensation.
